Assignment Two Constitutional Procedures

Posted: August 12th, 2013

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Assignment Two Constitutional Procedures

Question 1. a) Review the attached translation of the Magna Carta and the Articles of Confederation. Do paragraphs 1, 20, 55, and 61 in the Magna Carta have anything similar in the United States Constitution (Check Amendments One, Five, Six, Eight and 14 of the United States Constitution)? Explain. b) Compare how the Congress (House and Senate) is chosen under the United States Constitution with how “Congress Assembled” was selected under the Articles of Confederation.

Paragraphs 1, 20, 55 and 61 in the Magna Carta have several similarities with the United States constitution. The first amendment in the constitution concerns the rights of the church and the people as well, where congress has no right over the establishment of religions (Historic Documents 2012). The Magna Carta grants the church its freedom of elections in the first paragraph. Paragraph 20 and the Fifth and sixth Amendment protect individual property and human life from injustices such as lack of due process according to law, as well as unfair taking of property and fines. Paragraph 55 of Magna Carta and amendment eight protect people from excessive fines. The main similarity is protection of individual rights from those in power. Selection of the house of senate under the constitution of the United States is done through direct elections by members of the public. The senate serves six years. Under the articles of confederation, the congress was to be chosen by the state legislature (Archiving Early America 2013).

Question 2 How many Federal Judicial Districts are there in the United States Court system? What is the total number of the United States Courts of Appeal? Explain the anomaly that there only 11 Circuit Courts of Appeal but more than 11 U.S. Courts of Appeal. What are Federal Magistrates and how are these office holders appointed? Is there a Federal District Court in Colorado and what states are included in the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeal? 

In the unites states, there are 94 federal judicial districts courts with each district having at least one while some have more than one. There are 13 courts of appeal in United States. Only 11 circuit courts of appeal exist while courts of appeal are more than this as previously indicated. The reason is that the circuit courts of appeal are composed of the 94 judicial districts that are under 12 regions. Federal magistrates are judicial officer within United States served with the responsibility of assisting district judges to get cases ready for trial. He can decide on a case where both parties agree on having a magistrate here their case instead of a judge. Federal magistrates are appointed by district court judges to serve an eight-year term of office. The appointment is made after recommendations from a citizen’s merit screening where they are assessed for merit to hold office. There is a federal district in Colorado and the states included in the tenth circuit are Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Wyoming, New Mexico, and Utah.

Question 3 Identify the county and the judicial district in which you reside; identify the following court officials in your county and judicial district: the Chief Judge of the Judicial District; the Presiding Judge of the County Court; the District Attorney. How many judges are in the County Court; how many judges in the Judicial District? What counties are included in the Judicial District within which you reside?

My judicial district is Colorado, and the county is Denver. The current chief judge of my judicial district is Marcia S. Krieger active since 2002 and become the chief judge this year. The current presiding judge in Denver county court is John M. Mariucci and the current district attorney for the district of Colorado is John F. Walsh. Denver county court is comprised of seventeen judges. There are 12 district judges in the Colorado judicial district and one chief judge (Colorado State Courts 2013). All the counties in Colorado are included in the judicial district of Colorado.

Question 4 Review the selection of judges in the Colorado court system and compare that process with the manner of selecting judges in the United States Court system, then answer these questions. A) What body makes recommendations for judges for county courts, the district courts in Colorado? Who makes the appointments to these courts? B) What body makes recommendations to the Colorado court of appeals and the Colorado Supreme Court? Who makes the appointments to these two courts? C) Locate the specific Article in the United States Constitution that describes how judges are appointed in the United States Court system and summarize the process with one paragraph. 

In Colorado, the recommendations for judges for the county courts and district courts are made by a judicial district nominating commission. The appointments to these courts are made by the non-voting Supreme Court and seven residents of the judicial district. To the Colorado appellate courts, the recommendations are made by the judicial nominating commission. The judges are then appointed by the governor from the list provided by the commission. For the Supreme Court, the recommendations are made by the Supreme Court nominating commission and the governor makes the appointments (Colorado State Courts 2013).

The specific article in the United States constitution describing the appointment of judges in the court system is Article II section 2 clause 2, which is known as the appointments clause. It states that the president has the power to appoint certain official to office with advice and consent from the United States senate. The clause also allows the president to appoint some of the lower level officials without the need for advice and consent of the senate.

Question 5 Marbury v. Madison has been identified with the concept of judicial review. Review the case and note the intricate steps Justice John Marshall took to determine whether Marbury, Hooe, and others should be granted a Writ of Mandamus. Then answer the following questions: a) Who is Marbury? Who is Madison? Who is John Marshall? b) Who is the President of the United States at the time of the case? Who was the previous President? c) What were the positions of Madison and Marshall in the previous administration? d) What did Marshall decide and why? (ultimately, it becomes judicial review, but the response is specific to the case.)

Marbury was nominated by President John Adams as an advisor to the senate and later to be nominated as a justice of peace for the district of Colombia. Madison was the secretary of state at the time who was seeking the writ of mandamus. John Marshal was the acting secretary of state at the time of the case. At this time of the case, the president of United States of America is Thomas Jefferson. The previous president before Thomas Jefferson was John Adams. In the previous administration, Madison was secretary of state in the previous administration while Marshall was the secretary of state during the term of John Adams. Marshall decided that Marbury was entitled to his commission or the writ of mandamus because he had been appointed by the president under the consent of the senate, which is evidenced by the commission (Tunney 277).